Education

It is the responsibility of the state and a core element of any development policy committed to social justice. Yet for many children worldwide, the right to education remains unfulfilled.

While strides have been made to increase access to primary school for 29 million more children over the past decade, 67 millions of children, especially girls, remain out of school. The reality in most countries is that the quality of education continues to be poor.

ActionAid’s rights-based approach to education

Over the past 38 years ActionAid has been working to increase access to quality primary education globally. Our approach has evolved from delivering education services to adopting a rights based approach.

Our work currently focuses on 3 key priorities:

1. Improving the quality of education by supporting active mobilisation enabling citizens to hold the State accountable for providing quality education in a concrete and sustainable manner 
2. Securing adequate funds for education by equipping citizens with the tools to demand and monitor a just, equitable and effective allocation of resources 
3. Empowering women through literacy using our Reflect approach to social change

Key to achieving these goals is challenging and transforming the socio-economic and political factors keeping girls out of school, including violence, HIV and AIDS and poverty. More information to follow on our work on girls’ education violence in and around schools.

We work alongside children, parents, teachers, communities, teachers unions, researchers and education coalitions to undertake evidenced-based advocacy and campaigning, to inform innovative community-based interventions and research efforts.  We connect to regional education networks – CLADE, ASPBAE and ANCEFA and the Global Campaign for Education as a founding and current board member.